PF 24. Behaviour of alfalfa-ovillo meadow at different grazing frequencies with lambs

Abstract

The objective was to determine forage on-offer and residual and live-weight gain in lambs when grazing on an alfalfa-orchard pasture at different intervals. In a rotational grazing three intervals: 21, 28 or 35 days were tested. Grazing period was 7 days and daily herbage allowance was 5% on all treatments. Experimental design was a complete block with three replications. Only in the third grazing cycle differences (P < .05) in forage on offer and residual among grazing frequencies were found. The highest forage on-offer was at the 35 days interval, while the highest residual forage was at the 21 days interval. The higher amount of residual forage at the 21 day interval was of lower quality and then live-weight at 90 days of grazing and live-weight gain were the lowest at this grazing interval.